Dark Replica
by WhiteGamma
Summary: When scientist Ryou Bakura's clone project goes wrong, another Bakura is created. However, the clone is anything but like the original. Not only is his personality the exact opposite but he also possesses inhuman powers. His only weakness - Malik.


A/N: Credits for the title go to Kuracakes :) I came up with this while watching a superhero movie so yeah... I couldn't stop myself from writing it. I just hope you'll enjoy it.

It takes place in America so I'm using the names from the dub. I'm not good with technical things so if anything bothers you, tell me!

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><p>Chapter 1<p>

Failed Project

The sun had not even risen and yet people were already hasting out of their houses, to their cars, bikes or other vehicles and to their work. The city never slept, there was never a time when all lights went out and it was never truly silent. But this, the people, the sky scrapers, taxis and posters, this was the soul of the city. The city in which he lived.

The traffic light switched green and all standing feet began to walk towards the other side of the busy road. While most pairs of feet hurried to their aim, one pair remained composed in its calm pace. The brown fabric of a trench coat floated gently in the air as the feet did their job. A tanned, bronze colored hand came up to run through silky, platinum blond hair. Kohl-rimmed eyes closed and the young man sighed contently as a breeze of fresh air stroked his face. He did not have to walk a lot anymore, he was almost at his destination, by the smell of the air he could tell so. That realization made eagerness spark within him even more and he picked up the pace. Although he had not slept much last night, he had jumped out of bed today, full of energy and he already knew in what he should invest that. His grip on the paper bag he was carrying tightened and he sent a brief glance towards it to check on it. A smile spread on his beautiful, tanned face and he sighed once more. He was in one of his best moods today. Finally, he was standing in front of his destination. Looking up the huge building that seemed to consist of glass and hundreds of windows only, he proceeded towards the fitting large entrance. He greeted the security standing there and went past the electronic doors into the lobby. He went straight for the elevator and pressed the button 'U7'. The doors slid closed and he glanced once more to the bag in his hands. When a soft beep tone signaled that he was at his destination, he looked up again.

The doors opened and revealed a dark, monotonously gray lab. The main lights were switched off but the place was illuminated by various lights from monitors and screens. There was actually no need for any additional light sources if your eyes had adjusted to the darkness. Beeping and clicking noises was all he could hear and so he stepped into the familiar room, the elevator closing behind him. He looked around in search for anyone who might be there at this early hour. He peered further into the lab and rounded the corner on the left. There his eyes settled on a form, crouched over a desk. It was a young man with long, snow white hair and almost equally white, pale skin with a fitting white coat. His arms were folded on the desk, his cheek placed on them. The tanned male grinned at the sight of the other sleeping. He carefully put his bag on the floor beside the chair. Then he bent down and placed a hand over the sleeping man's shoulder, shaking lightly. He stirred but did not wake up immediately. The other was about to try once more when something on the screen in front of him caught his attention.

His lavender eyes shifted to the formula on the screen. They lowered until they found the result. The young man's face lit up in excitement, reading over the formula once more, making sure he was not seeing things. He gasped excitedly. "He did it", he said to himself in joy. "He really did it." He then completely forgot about any gentleness and shook the other male almost violently.

"Ryou! You did it! I can't believe it!" he shouted. The man named Ryou could not have possibly ignored how loud the other was being and this time he did wake up. His first reaction was to cover his ears before he even opened his eyes. He groaned and deep brown eyes opened to look for the origin of the noise that had awoken him.

"M-Malik…?" he asked uncertainly but the excited blond was not even listening. Malik only saw that the white haired man was finally awake and hugged him tightly while rambling all sorts of things the other could not even make out. The only thing he heard over and over again was 'You did it!'. Did what, he wondered. However, before he even had the time to ask the other had already released him but grabbed his hand and was pulling him back towards the elevator. "Malik, wait. Where are we going?"

"We need to tell Mr. Kaiba! I bet even he is going to be happy about that", the blond went on and Ryou was still as confused as before. Seto Kaiba was their boss, the founder of the company they worked for, Kaiba Corporation. This very young yet at the same time very successful man was known for being a ruthless and goal-oriented person who always got what he wanted. And that was only because he knew how to do that, how to play people to make them bend to his will. Admittedly, he had a very bad reputation because of the way he treated people, especially those he disliked, but he was a good employer regardless. His employees were paid well and everyone who worked for him and did as he told them had a safe job. Meaning, if Malik knew something that would make Kaiba with the stone heart _happy_ then this meant it was something really big.

He anxiously watched Malik push the '60' button. They really were going to Seto Kaiba's office then. Of course they were, Malik would never lie to him, he knew that. Malik Ishtar, one of his colleagues and one of the most talented scientists he knew, was also his best friend. They had known each other for only two years but they had grown to become nearly inseparable. Especially Ryou felt like the blond had a special place in his heart. He glanced over at said male and smiled shyly at the eager expression he wore. When the doors opened he was slightly disappointed to have to look away. Ahead of them was a long hallway and at the end was a large, wooden door - Kaiba's office.

Malik went up to the door, Ryou in tow, but halted in front of it, being reluctant at last. His boss was someone he did not see every day, much less speak to him very often. Everyone became hesitant as soon as they were standing in front of this door. He knocked on the massive wood at long last and the answer was almost immediate.

"Enter", commanded the deep voice from behind the door. Ryou felt like something icy cold had just run down his spine and he shuddered. Malik gulped audibly and they both did as they were told, stepping into the room. Ryou closed the door behind them and then both walked towards the elegantly designed desk. Their employer was not facing them, instead the sight of a black back rest greeted them.

Malik inhaled carefully as if bracing himself for something painful and finally spoke up. "Mr. Kaiba, sir? We are here to report about the project."

Still they were not graced by the young business man's face, he remained with his back to them. "Then report", came the unimpressed order.

"Sir", the blond began carefully, "all preparations have been made. We can finally begin the project."

At this, the chair finally whirled around and the back rest was replaced by a young face with ocean blue eyes. "Really", he replied, still sounding unimpressed. But Malik knew that he had come a step closer because he was now face to face with the stone heart.

"Yes", he confirmed eagerly, oblivious to the confused look he received from his partner who was standing beside him. "And we will begin today, as soon as the team is complete."

"Very well", Kaiba said with a nod of his head and dismissed the pair again. "Report as soon as you have the first results."

"We will", Malik assured and turned on his heels to leave again, tugging on Ryou's white coat to drag him along. Outside the office, Malik let go of his friend. "Man, Mr. Kaiba sure always looks the same, no matter the time of the day. Such a workaholic", he commented. They were back in the elevator again when Ryou regained the ability to speak.

"Uhm... Malik?"

"Yes?"

"You just told Mr. Kaiba that all preparations had been made."

"That's what I said", the blond confirmed. "Don't you remember that you finished it? I just saw the results on the screen." But the whitette only shook his head uncertainly and Malik put a finger on his chin, tapping on it thoughtfully. "Well, you must have stayed up all night to finish it, I guess. That's just so typical of you."

Ryou merely nodded solemnly and walked out of the elevator when they had reached their lab again. He stole a glance at the alarm clock which now read 5:19 am. His eyes widened and he turned towards Malik who was just taking off his trench coat to put on the white lab coat.

"It's only 5 in the morning and you're already here?" Ryou asked incredulously. Malik reflexively checked the clock himself before nodding with a smile.

"Yes. I wanted to be earlier today", he explained.

"Huh?" Ryou blinked. "But why?"

Malik grinned at him and flicked his golden hair out of the white coat. "I knew you'd forget."

"Forget what?"

The tanned man picked up the paper bag he had put down beside the desk and motioned for Ryou to follow him. They entered the room whose door read 'kitchen' and both sat down at the table in the middle. Malik set down his bag in the center of it and pulled out its content, a cardboard box.

"Close your eyes", Malik ordered and before Ryou could question it, the blond already added "Just do it."

The young scientist did as he was told and closed his eyes. He could hear the other get up from his chair. He heard something rustle and then something near him clicked. He was very curious now. The smell he was suddenly aware of reminded him of someting, like burning candles.

"Okay, you can look now", he heard Malik say at last. Naturally Ryou lost no time and obliged and when he opened his eyes it knocked the breath right out of him. He was speechless. In front of him sat a sweet, brown chocolate cake with candles on top of it. One of the candles had the shape of a '2' and the other was a '1'. The top of the cake was decorated with colorful sprinkles and Ryou had to laugh.

"That...", he began breathlessly but did not even know what to say.

"Happy birthday, Ryou", said Malik in a gentle voice. The addressed boy turned to him with teary eyes and he embraced him, only more careful than Malik had done before. Malik responded by wrapping his arms around the other's waist and let his chin rest on his shoulder.

"Thank you", Ryou said and Malik did not miss the sniff right afterwards.

"Need a tissue?" he asked mockingly and did not actually expect an answer.

"Yes, probably", Ryou said, sniffing once more. Malik chuckled and let go of him to retrieve the requested tissue from one of his pockets. "You know", the whitette began, rubbing his nose with the tissue, "I don't remember when I last received a birthday gift."

At that, Malik's smug expression softened. Ryou had even forgotten about his birthday because to him it had lost its meaning. And even if he had remembered, he would not have expected to get any presents, much less a self-baked cake. He did not even know how to explain just how grateful he was. "Thank you", was all he could think of at that moment.

Malik shrugged his shoulders casually. "Don't mention it. The cake is actually the reason why I left so punctually yesterday."

"I really don't know what to say."

"I told you it's fine. Come on, let's eat something and then save all the data again. I'll bet you didn't save it before you fell asleep on the desk." Ryou scratched the back of his neck sheepishly and smiled.

"Well, no, you're right."

At exactly 6 o'clock the elevator doors slid open to let another person enter the lab. A small man with tri-colored hair, looking much younger than his actual age stepped in and dropped his backpack in the corner where he always kept it. A pair of amethyst eyes scanned the lab.

"Ryou? Are you there?" he called and there was an immediate answer. The white haired male poked his head around the corner with a smile.

"Good morning, Yugi", he greeted and another head joined him beside him.

"Hey there, Yugi", Malik greeted as well.

"Hi Malik, you're early today", the boy commented. The moment he did, the blond started to point both of his index fingers at Ryou, his lips moving in a way as if to say 'birthday'.

"Oh!" Yugi gasped and went up to Ryou to shake his hand. "Happy birthday!"

"Thanks", he said with a polite smile which the other returned. "Anyway, you're just in time."

"For what?" the boy with the three hair colors asked and the other two scientists both grinned triumphantly. The older of the pair raised an memory stick which had the logo of Kaiba Corp. on it.

"The project. We can finally start."

For a moment the boy was silent but then he gasped even louder than before, saying, "Really? That's amazing!"

"It is", Ryou agreed and observed the stick longingly. "Years of hard work." He then felt a hand place itself on his shoulder and he gazed up at Malik.

"And today we'll finally be able to see the fruits of our labour", he finished for the other who nodded agreeingly.

* * *

><p>"Huh? Really? It's finished?" a loud voice asked excitedly. The young male the voice belonged to had short blond hair and hazel eyes. Like everyone else he, too, although he was only an assistent, wore a white coat over his blue shirt and pair of jeans.<p>

Before either Ryou or Malik could answer another voice joined in. "Does that mean we can finally start the actual project?" a man with gel-fixed brown hair and equally chocolate eyes asked.

"Hey, Tristan, get outta the way! I asked first!" the blond who had been pushed backwards lamented and was now pushing Tristan back, too.

"Well, only the strong survive, right, Joey?" he asked over his shoulder.

Malik saw that the two boys were ready to punch each other and deemed it to be wise to interrupt so long as it was still possible. He cleared his throat, successfully catching everyone's attention. "To answer your questions, Joey... Tristan... Yes, it's finished and yes again, we can start. And we're starting today", he said in a determined tone. He had to fight the strong urge to dance out of sheer joy. So much hard work and time had been invested in this project and today they could finally see the first results. He was confident that everything was going to be as planned, he did not even have to hope.

The clicking of high heels could be heard as the woman wearing them stepped towards the group of scientists and assistents. All heads turned to the beautiful lady with long golden hair and bright amethyst eyes. "This sounds very promising to me. When exactly are we going to start?" her mature, feminine voice asked as she flicked a strand of gold out of her face. Mai Valentine was neither a scientist nor an assistent but rather the head of the group and leader of the project. She was responsible for the progress the project made and the well-being of the people working on it. While everybody else was integrated and part of the project, Mai was more the type to take care of the paper work. She was a part of the team, yes, but she was reserved and did not interact with others more than necessary. She mainly took minutes and it was usually her that reported to Mr. Kaiba. She had been working for Kaiba Corp. for much longer than anybody else of the team and was therefore viewed as the experienced leader who had gained everybody's respect within seconds. She was straight-forward but not impolite, charismatic and determined. And she knew exactly what she wanted, and that she always got.

The lady walked up to Ryou and looked down at him expectantly. "Now that you're here, Mrs. Valentine, we can start right away if everyone is prepared", Ryou answered with a polite smile.

"Wonderful!", Mai exclaimed and turned on her heels to the other side, walking towards a large metal door. Without hesitating, she went to the keyboard located on the right side of the door and typed in the password. Pressing on 'enter', the screen briefly showed the word 'accepted' before it turned black again. There was a loud clicking noise before the heavy metal door slowly slid open. Mai went inside and the team followed.

The room had metal walls and no windows. It consisted of a large computer and two capsules in egg-like shapes. The two capsules were connected to each other and the computer by several pipes and cables. With the clicking of her heels, Mai sauntered towards the screen and touched it. The computer was immediately out of its stand-by modus and active again. The monitor showed several stats and graphs which only scientists knew what exactly they meant. She turned back to the group with an eager expression. "Well then, gentlemen", she said, "let's begin the cloning."

At that, Malik's head snapped to his best friend beside him. "Ryou, I believe we forgot a tiny fact."

"And that would be?" the other asked, confused.

"Well, if we're cloning someone... then we also need someone we can clone. I did not organize anybody because I had not expected that we could start today."

The tanned male observed the albino worriedly but the other only smiled. "It's okay."

"It is…?"

"Yes", Ryou assured with a nod. "Because I decided that I'm going to be our first guinea pig."

"What?" everyone said in unison.

"But... that...", Malik protested. Suddenly he was not so confident about the project anymore. They had never tested the machine before, they had only calculated that it had to work. But what if it did not? Malik shifted his lavender eyes towards the floor as he thought of the possibilities of what might happen if the machine did not work. The body entering the capsule was going to be attached to all sorts of cables after all. He might receive severe damage if something went wrong. His friend might even die. "Ryou", he began and faced his friend with a stern look, "I can't let you do this. If the machine doesn't work-"

"I appreciate your concern", Ryou interrupted, silencing the other, "but I have already decided. I trust that everything is going to work." He smiled to reassure the worried-looking Malik. But on the inside he was very insecure himself. He knew what could happen if they had miscalculated only one little thing. Still, there was something that convinced him to do it. Not only that he had worked so much for this day and would not back away just because they did not have a guinea pig. But he also felt the need to prove something. That he was ready for this significant step. He wanted to prove this, especially to Malik. To the one person who had become something more than just a friend or acquaintance he would occasionally talk to. He was all the more touched by said man's concern.

Malik sighed in defeat and hung his head. "Fine. But be careful."

Ryou placed a hand comfortingly on the other's shoulder and kept smiling. "Promise."

"Ryou, are you sure you want to do this?" a timid voice asked and the addressed boy looked over his shoulder to face Yugi.

"Yes", he confirmed with a nod of his head, "I've made up my mind." And Yugi nodded as well.

"Okay, let's begin", Mai announced from her spot beside the large monitor and everyone began to move. The female pulled a pen out of her pocket and picked up her clipboard. Ryou went to the left capsule, the clostest one, Malik following him. There he started to pull off his coat and shirt while Malik pulled out the cables that were located on the inside of the capsule. When Ryou was ready he carefully began to attach the cables to the albino's creamy pale skin - to his head, neck, chest, shoulders, arms, wrists. Malik noticed his friend shift awkwardly from time to time but assumed it was because of the uncomfortable feeling of the needles. What he failed to notice, however, was the light, red tinge on his ivory cheeks.

The tan scientist checked the cables once more, he wanted everything to be safer than safe now that Ryou's life was on the line. When he was finished he looked up at his friend who was strangely avoiding looking at him. He briefly questioned himself why he would do that but shook it off almost right away. There were other things he had to worry about now.

Meanwhile, Yugi was setting up the computer so they could start. Joey and Tristan both went to prepare the machine. On their way there, the brunette nudged the other's side with his elbow to catch his attention. "Psst."

"What do you want, Tristan?" Joey asked annoyedly and the other grinned maliciously.

"I saw it. You were looking at her booty", Tristan said accusingly. Joey blushed almost immediately but looked away so the other would not see. He knew what he was referring to but did not intend to say that.

"I don't know what you're talking about", the blond responded and the other's grin only widened.

"Come on, Joey. You know exactly what I'm talking about. Just admit it already!" And if Joey had not wished to hit him earlier, then he did now. "You have the hots for her."

"Shut up!" the blond hissed and quickly turned his head to see whether the very lady this conversation was about had heard anything. She seemed indifferent and he sighed in relief.

"Oh?" Tristan said teasingly, "So you haven't told her yet? Want me to do that for you?"

"No, thanks!" Joey snapped but the brunette had already turned around and was heading towards the blond woman.

"If you're too shy, then I'll do it for you, of course. That's what friends are for, right, Joe?" he kept teasing and was almost in front of Mai now. Joey quickly caught up with him and pulled at the other's white coat, forcing him to stop in his tracks.

"Don't you dare!"

"Oh yes, I do." And with that Tristan pulled himself out of the other's grasp to stand in front of Mai who was completely absorbed in her protocol. "Miss Valentine", he said. Mai looked up when she heard her name but in the very moment she did, Joey lunged forward and practically jumped on top of his friend to prevent him from saying anything. The action made Yugi back off from the monitor and Tristan supported himself by slamming his hand flat on the keyboard of the computer.

"I told you to shut up!" Joey yelled furiously as he kept an iron grip on his friend. Despite the rough treatment, Tristan found reason to laugh. He did not once noticed how the keys he had accidentally pressed made a few stripes on the screen expand to the highest degree. A red light flashed across the screen which read 'danger'.

"Hey, what's going on here?" Mai demanded to know as she put her hands on her hips and eyed the boys with a strict face. Joey let go of Tristan and both straightened up immediately, looking sheepish. The moment the brunette had gotten off of the keyboard the screen went back to normal and nobody ever saw the 'danger' linger there for a few seconds. While both of the boys apologized for their behaviour, Yugi went to check on the computer.

"Everything fine here", he mumbled to himself contently. He turned towards the capsules where Ryou and Malik had just finished everything. "If you are ready, we can start!" he called to them.

"Alright", Malik called back. He shot once last warning glance towards Ryou before he took a step backwards. Ryou nodded, understanding, and stepped into the capsule. "We are ready", the tan blond said.

With that Yugi pressed a key and both capsules closed slowly. As the door closed and Ryou vanished behind it, Malik's heart skipped a beat. He could feel his hands grow damp with nervousness and sweat form on his forehead. A thick gulp that was not able to swallow the fear. He was genuinely scared. Even though he believed in science, he began to pray, hoping that some higher power might hear it and help him. He prayed for Ryou's safety. At this point his concern had exceeded his excitement. Before he had been anxious to see the results but now he just wanted his friend to be safe. He wished with all of his power that something would happen and that they could not start the project today. If they had to move it to another day then they could organize a guinea pig, someone Malik did not care about. It sounded cruel but it was the best solution he could think of. For it meant that his friend would not have to go through all the danger and he could enjoy the results without having to worry.

He had been looking forward to this day. The day their little team would make history. Never before had mankind managed what they were about to do. The project was not a simple cloning project in which they used cells or DNA to create an embryo. No, what they were about to do was much harder to accomplish. They used blood and brainwaves, which could be seen on the monitor, to create the same human once more. Not in the form of a baby, but a person of the exact same age as the original. Meaning, if everything worked out, they would have two Ryou's standing in front of them any minute now. The clone would have the same height, the same hair length, the same body, voice and even personality. Their next tests were supposed to be clones with a different personality which could be influenced by manipulating the given brainwaves. But for now all they wanted was a healthy copy of their albino scientist.

Everything was ready, all Yugi had to do was press one simple button. He looked to Malik who gave him a reluctant nod. That was it. With this confirmation the small scientist pressed the button and everything started. A female computer voice announced the start of the operation and electricity began to jolt through the cables that were connected to both capsules. Ryou winced when the spots were the cables were attached began to hurt. Blood began to wander from one capsule to the other, still empty one. The group noticed this and all of their faces lit up with hope and excitement.

"It's working", Yugi said, watching in awe as the machine did its work. Malik's eyes did not linger on the blood-filled cables for too long and they shifted back to the small window through which he could watch his friend. But what he saw worried him more. Ryou did not look like he was doing well. His eyes were tightly shut and his face was twisted with pain.

'We're almost through, Ryou. Just a little more', he said in his head, hoping dearly that his friend was going to be fine.

Meanwhile, Ryou was struggling with what was happening to his body. He felt the air around him grow hot at an alarming speed and the pain from the cables did not cease. On the oposite, it became worse with every second ticking him by. Sweat was freely running down his entire body by now and he was starting to regret his decision. His head hurt the most and he felt light-headed. He could not hear anything anymore, neither the others outside nor the noise of the machine inside. All he could hear was a deafening ringing in his ears. It was driving him crazy. Even with his eyes shut the world seemed to spin but it should not. He felt the needles suck out the blood to transfer it to the other capsule. At least it was working but why had the machine not stopped yet? It was set up to stop as soon as it had enough blood to work with. He had already lost too much. Something was not right.

Suddenly he felt electricity run through his body, sizzling with every cell it hit. Ryou screamed in agony as it burnt him from the inside.

"Ryou!" Malik yelled as he watched the other writhe in pain. He sprinted towards the capsule and slammed both of his palms against the window. His friend let out another agonized scream and Malik felt horrified to the core. He turned to Yugi.

"Yugi! Stop the machine! Quick!" he ordered, panicking.

The shorter male lost no time and clicked on the 'cancel' button. However, it did not work. He tried again, clicking repeatedly on it.

"What's wrong?"

"It's not working", Yugi said and tried a combination of several keys to make the process stop. Finally the computer responded, but it was not what Yugi had hoped for. It read that it would take up to a few minutes. 'Please be patient' was added at the bottom and the small man furiously hit the keyboard. "It will take a few minutes", he informed the tanned scientist.

"We have no time for this!" Malik shouted and turned back to the capsule. He tried to open the door with his fingernails but it did not budge. Another pained scream could be heard from the inside and smoke was starting to sneak out through the slits of the closed door. He began to pound on the metal hysterically. "Open up, damnit!" Then an idea struck him. There was a lever to open the door from the inside.

"Ryou!" he called out to the suffering albino, but there was no response. "Ryou!" he tried again but the other could not hear him.

"Damnit!" He turned to the others. "There's a lever on the inside but he can't hear me!"

Tristan and Joey looked at each other and without any words needed they understood what they had to do. Both went straight to the wall and got the fire extinguisher. "Outta the way!" they called in unison and Malik stepped aside. With enough force they hit through the glass of the window. The glass shattered into hundreds of pieces and the boys retrieved the fire extinguisher which had left a big hole in the broken window. Their faces were almost immediately hit by a thick cloud of smoke and they coughed.

"Where's that lever?" Joey asked Malik over his shoulder.

"It must be on the right side."

"Alright. Tristan, step aside", the blond ordered and the other obeyed, leaving the rest to his friend. He reached inside with his left arm and felt around on the inside. Everyone was waiting impatiently and watched since that was everything they could do right now. "There!" Joey suddenly exclaimed and pushed down the object he had found. Fortunately, it had been the lever and the door opened. The blond had just enough time to pull his arm out when Malik already jumped in front of him. The machine had automatically stopped working when the door was opened and it was not dangerous to enter anymore. He merely coughed when he, too, was attacked by a cloud of smoke but did not let it stop him. He bent down to the young man sitting on the floor. Malik could not see his face because it was hidden behind the boy's white bangs. He put his hands on his shoulders and shook as gently as he could in his state of hysteria.

"Ryou", he said and was happy to see the other look up at him.

"Ma… Malik?" his strained voice asked uncertainly.

Malik tried his best to smile and began to undo the cables so he could get his friend out of this hellish machine. "Yes, it's me. E-everything's going to be okay, you're going t-to be okay", he rambled while he unplugged the cables. They were dropped to the floor one by one and when Ryou was finally free again, Malik helped him stand up. But once the albino was on his feet, he collapsed again. Fortunately, Malik had been prepared for this and caught him.

He turned to the rest of the group. "He needs treatment. Help me, guys." The two assistent friends were the first ones at his side to aid him carry out the unconscious scientist. Yugi brought a cover and spread it on the floor where Ryou was laid down.

"Is Bakura okay?" Mai asked from beside Malik but the blond shook his head.

"I don't know... but it's possible that he has internal injuries. We should call an ambulance."

"I'll call one!" Joey exclaimed and was already heading towards the door when there was a sudden noise. All heads turned to look back to the machine where the noise had come from.

When he could not make out anything that might have caused the sound, Malik squinted his eyes. And then he saw it. The second capsule was slowly opening. Everyone remained frozen on their spot, only Malik stood up from beside his unconscious friend. Cautiously, he made his way to the capsule. As it opened a cloud of smoke drifted out onto the metallic floor. Malik was standing right in front of it now and he could hear his heart pounding in his ears, he gulped thickly. As he narrowed his eyes, he could make out a shape. He gasped quietly. It was the shape of a person, of a human being. Had the project been a success after all? The tapping of bare feet could be heard. They were approaching him and would leave the capsule any moment now. His heart began to hammer even harder against his ribcage. Through the wall of smoke, he could see a pair of blood red slits that slowly widened into orbs. The tapping grew louder.

'This...' Another step. 'Is this my body that's moving?' The needles that were attached to creamy white skin fell of as the body became more and more out of reach. 'Are those my eyes that I see through...' As the smoke slowly began to vanish, more things came into sight. A gray, metallic ceiling and equally gray walls. An artificial light, not the sun. And there was something else, something naturally beautiful. A tan face with black-rimmed, sparkling lavender eyes. Platinum blond hair, shining even in the false light just like the golden earrings that accompanied it. This person's eyes were looking at him, expectantly, maybe even hopefully. And he knew exactly why.

Malik stood unmovingly and watched as an actual person climbed out of the narrow capsule. A pale hand supported itself on the edge of the opening and the first foot was set on the floor in front of him. Snow white strands of long hair flowed with every move. The tanned scientist almost gasped again when he caught sight of the pale, yet muscular body. It was unlike Ryou's, the original body, it looked much stronger. This person's eyes had a crimson color and his hair was different, too. It was spiked up at odd angles, defying gravity, unlike Ryou's neat hairdo. What he noticed then was the man's face. It had Ryou's shape yet it looked like that of an entirely different person. Although he had a straight face, it did not look as soft as Ryou's, instead it looked hard, yet mature.

In his musings, Malik had not noticed how close the clone had come. The pale man stopped right in front of him and looked down with those blood red eyes of his. Malik then noticed with displeasure that the clone was also taller than him. He was used to looking down at Ryou because he was taller but this clone was different in more than one way. Now he knew, the project had not been a success, but not a failure either. Interesting.

The clone raised his hand and he could hear the others in the background gasp with surprise. Malik had flinched but covered it with a straight face. He knew that showing distrust was not a good beginning if he wanted to work together with this clone. So he waited for whatever he was going to do. But no matter how he thought about it, he was nervous. The clone did not let any of this bother him and by now his hand had been raised to the scientist's face. Reluctantly, he cupped the other's tanned cheek, feeling the smooth skin. Seeing no signs of resistance, he let his fingers trail over the bronze skin.

Malik was loosing his suspicion for the clone and let him do as he pleased. He admittedly found it nice, relaxing even. Ryou would never do anything of the sort, Malik thought as he let his eyes flutter closed.

When the white haired man saw the other close his eyes, he dared another step. His fingertips trailed down to the slightly parted lips and brushed over them with little pressure. Malik surpressed a shudder but the clone could see the resistance and smirked mischievously. The others did nothing, they just watched and Joey had even forgotten about his plan to call an ambulance. All of them were too caught up in the scene to even say something or simply move.

The fingers went further down and captured Malik's chin. At that, his eyes opened a bit, glazed over with something he could not name. And the man in front of him leaned in to connect their lips.

Lavender eyes widened instantly and loud, disbelieving gasps could be heard from the others. Malik stayed frozen in shock and surprise just like everybody else. Only the man kissing him showed signs of life, very intimate ones. After a moment, however, he pulled away from the kiss. He lingered near the other's lips and seeing the tan yet brightly flushed face made him smirk.

Malik could not believe what had just happened. His mind went wild, thoughts racing in his head along with his quickly pounding heart. 'He… just… he just…!' The blood red orbs in front of him seemed to become more distant as the world began to spin. He saw that smirk blurry and the world go black. And he fainted.

* * *

><p>AN: I loved the last scene~ And I didn't do it without a reason. So how was it? Want to read more? I'd be happy! Please tell me what you think

P.S: It's not logical that you can clone like that, I know.


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